Pizza and the other bad things that we love

khelm31

So I'm sure all of us have things we like to eat, that are not the healthiest options for us, so how do you work those things into your diet without going overboard? I know balance is key, but sometimes even when I plan for those higher calorie indulges, once I'm there, I tend to eat more of it than I should. Should I give up the trigger foods all together? Any advice or tools you use for these situations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

EvanKeel

Whether or not you should give them up entirely depends on you. If you're going to binge on something that you're depriving yourself of, then that's not very sustainable.

If you find that moderation is a problem once you've got the pizza (or whatever) in front of you, then plan for it. Go over your goal by 1000 calories that meal and go under your goal by 250 for the next 4 days, for example.

BoatsnHose

'I eat 1700-1800 calories a day most days.

Skip breakfast
500 calories or so for lunch
1200-1300 for dinner

If I am going boozing that night, I'll just work extra hard in the gym the next day. Works great for me.

Veil5577

I have a birthday coming up this weekend and I have a 3 day weekend off work, and I'm planning on indulging. I am not going to worry too much about going overboard. I'll log everything I eat this weekend and next week will be right back on track at 1200 or under.

serindipte

Get your two pieces of pizza, make a big salad to go with it, light on the dressing, and put the rest of the pizza in the fridge. I'm far more likely to overindulge if it's easy. The whole idea of having to take it back out, heat it up and knowing it won't be as good as when it's fresh helps me keep from eating more than what I've planned for.

TeaBea

So I'm sure all of us have things we like to eat, that are not the healthiest options for us, so how do you work those things into your diet without going overboard? I know balance is key, but sometimes even when I plan for those higher calorie indulges, once I'm there, I tend to eat more of it than I should. Should I give up the trigger foods all together? Any advice or tools you use for these situations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

For me, I'm not giving up __________ (insert trigger food) forever. So I am working on lifestyle changes now.

I used to go sugar free before the start of a diet.....and that helped me stay on a diet. Notice I said before the start of a diet.....like it was a regular habit of mine and not something that was sustainable. So, do what you need to do to stay on your diet....but eventually you need to develop tools to deal with trigger foods.

Pizza is not "bad".....I eat pizza all the time. But adding a salad with every pizza meal, getting only 1 meat topping, selecting thin crust.....these are permanent changes I can make to keep pizza calories under control. Logging helps you see the "price" of pizza.

RodaRose

Pizza and I had to break up. We will get back together when I feel differently.

bcattoes

I vote yes for giving up trigger foods altogether, at least for a while. Maybe forever. Even if you do occasionally give in and binge, it's better than bingeing regularly.

But I think some favorite high calorie foods are worth going over on calories now and then. Baby rack ribs are the one that springs to mind for me. These are just so high calorie that they will never fit into a balanced day for me. But I still eat them occasionally. Not as often as I'd like because I'd rather have none than only eat a tiny portion.

Pizza I eat more often, but I prefer pizza without a lot of greasy toppings so my pizza usually isn't crazy high calories. I can often make a 10 in pizza fit in my day

_Zardoz_

Why is Pizza bad? Make a homemade pizza so you control; all the ingredients and it's no more 'Bad' than any other meal

beritrocksmyuniverse

I ONLY buy my trigger foods in small packages. For example, I buy a piece of pizza by the slice, or a single serving mini cupcake, or a small McDonalds fry. If something only comes in a larger package, I buy the smallest size available and immediately throw away all but a reasonable amount (unhealthy food is typically cheap food, so you shouldn't feel too bad about this).

So, YES, I think you can have pizza. But don't order a whole pizza. Go to Green Mill and order a slice (they deliver, too). This way you can indulge without having to have a ridiculous amount of self control. Even a single-serving slice at Sbarro is better than ordering and devouring an entire delivery pizza. You may be enticed by a good deal-- but it is not worth the extra calories.

Also, certain places list the calories on the menu by item. This makes it much easier to work in your treat without just throwing your hands up and giving up. I usually don't indulge if I can't find the nutrition facts and portion sizes. You'd be surprised how much a little research will help-- for example, cheese sticks at Toppers Pizza have way less calories than Papa Johns. It is worth looking up and making an educated choice.

acorsaut89

Pizza and I had to break up. We will get back together when I feel differently.

I love this lol . . . . I personally had to remove these trigger foods from my life for a while until I could portion them and control how much I ate of them.

For me - I don't crave sugar, but you get me around some good old fatty caesar salad and some pizza hut pepperoni lovers pizza and I'm done . . . or bread anything. Even now, I could legitimately eat and eat and eat until I throw up but I don't because I have gained the control over it.

But that control didn't come right away - I had to not eat these things for months and months until I could "trust myself" around them. I could only trust myself when I had lost a good amount of weight and I was like really, do I want slice 3 and 4 or do I want to feel ok tomorrow (I have IBS, so some trigger foods will cause flare ups too) and be able to go to the gym. And I know one bad meal doesn't make you fat just like one healthy meal won't make you skinny but it's more just being able to see my progress that makes me not want it. It's all psychological unfortunately.

JTick

I tend to shop meal to meal, and only buy as much food as I can fit in my calories. For example, tonight I've planned pizza. I prelogged it, and it will be 845 calories in my 1800 calorie budget. I'm making my own this time, with a premade crust, black olives, capers, grilled lamb, and muenster cheese. I'll get to the eat the whole thing, and won't have to worry about "binging". Once it's gone, it's all gone, no more to sneak, and no more ingredients to make another one.

SnuggleSmacks

I no longer buy large pizzas, and I only get the medium or small when I have someone to share with.

QuietBloom

Who told you pizza was bad??

tink11464

I still eat pizza (and any other food I want). When we order pizza - I have them double cut the slices. When I eat 2 slices - it's really only one - - if I have 3 slices - - it's 1.5 regular slices. Usually after I eat the 1st 2 halves I am full. I guess I would have lost more than 90lbs in the past year or so if I didn't eat whatever I wanted - but I did lose without depriving myself of the foods I like. I say - eat what you like - as long as it fits your macros

lalawaterlala

I love pizza so much. If I eat it, which is probably once a week, I try to make it as healthy as possible. For instance, I buy the pizza dough mix from a box and prepare it at home, use pizza sauce, and mozzarella cheese. Then I can add on veggies! Veggies when cooked have amazinnng benefits especially tomatoes. They release something called Lycopene which actually is a really powerful antioxidant that can help reduce chances of getting cancer, especially breast cancer!
Making a pizza home-made always helps me know exactly what I'm eating without a bunch of preservatives from being in the freezer isle. Additionally, pizza that is bought from a take-out place is usually much higher in fat for some reason (not sure why) and the portion sizes are out of control which makes me want to over eat.


Hope this helps and I hope you try making your own home-made pizza!! I use jiffy pizza crust mix and it is about one dollar.

Cheers

Meerataila

Why is Pizza bad? Make a homemade pizza so you control; all the ingredients and it's no more 'Bad' than any other meal

I want to do this vegan style, but I want to make my own dough. I need a bread maker and some good old fashioned novice chef courage!

seltzermint555

I ONLY buy my trigger foods in small packages. For example, I buy a piece of pizza by the slice, or a single serving mini cupcake, or a small McDonalds fry. If something only comes in a larger package, I buy the smallest size available and immediately throw away all but a reasonable amount (unhealthy food is typically cheap food, so you shouldn't feel too bad about this).

I do this sometimes too. I normally HATE the idea of wasting anything at all but I have to admit, I recently bought a six pack of delicious apple soda from an Asian market and it's almost 150 cal per can. I pour out 1/2 before I drink it every time and feel no regret.

SnuggleSmacks

This is where a very fit boyfriend with high metabolism comes in handy. I just get him to eat half (or more) of whatever indulgence I want. It's usually not difficult to convince him.

KnM0107

Pizza isn't bad...

MyChocolateDiet

There's a place close by that sells pizza by the slice. They even have a lunch special with a salad and a drink. Last time we went there I ordered the lunch special with a perrier as my drink, pizza with spinach and garlic as sauce, three cheeses and red peppers as the topping. I still put crushed red pepper and parmesan on top. Then having the salad dressing on the side and sharing my salad with someone made it all a satisfying lunch, while the family had pepperoni slices and the garlic bread that came with my salad. Even if I had been in the mood for pepperoni this lunch still would have been lower cal compared to sitting in front of a box of delivered pizza eating slice after slice with a big two liter delivery soda to wash it down.

Ordering pizza by the slice forces you to have to get up for another slice and take your wallet out again. Plus maybe stand around waiting for it, by then your tummy may be informing your brain you've had enough. Sometimes we eat so fast we don't notice we are full until we are overfull. That's happened to me with pizza sometimes, but it doesn't happen when I order by the slice.

snowflake954

Pizza

---

love it! However one needs a strategy. You can ask for a box, cut your pizza in half, and eat the other half on a day you exercise alot. Put it in the freezer as soon as you get home, so you won't be tempted to finish it off. My husband orders pizza every week when we go out. He can never finish it and expects me to, so I order myself a salad and eat 1/3 of his pizza, plus we split a desert. I used to agonize over going out, and fight with him, trying to refuse to eat his pizza. Now I fit it in, log it all, and relax and enjoy. :drinker:

accelerashawn

If you find that moderation is a problem once you've got the pizza (or whatever) in front of you, then plan for it. Go over your goal by 1000 calories that meal and go under your goal by 250 for the next 4 days, for example.

Saturday, I couldn't help it any longer...I hadn't had pizza in months and everywhere I turned I kept seeing pizza commercials, people mentioned pizza, my daughter wanted some pizza, a giant pizza chased me and tackled me and forced me to eat it in my dream....

So I got an extra large pepperoni and sausage pizza (half cheese for the daughter) and I ate half of it which was 1800 calories in itself. Sure it set me back half a week but now I don't feel like pizza anymore...haha.

You just need to be mindful, consistent, and maintain a balanced approach to your binge foods. Fitness is a long term goal...you can't get huge from falling off the wagon every once in a while...just make sure you hop back on. Also, depriving yourself of the awesomeness of pizza will drive you insane. Deprivation makes you want it more...and continued deprivation will just make you hate your diet and quit.

kaseyr1505

Unless it's poisoned, or expired, there are no bad foods.

I make room for things in my day and use practice moderation. Cutting foods out of my life isn't an option, so I taught myself to control portions.

khelm31

Thanks everyone for the advice. I noticed many of you brought up pizza, LOL! Most often I am ordering more than just enough for me because my husband loves it, and fortunately for him, he has never had a weight problem. He is always open to trying healthier options so I may just have to tell him we are going to forgo the convenience of the fast food pizzas for a while till I get back on track. If we want pizza, we will have to make a homemade, healthier version or go for the lean cuisine pizzas!

I do like the suggestions also to up the exercise or make up for it somewhere else if I over indulge in something. It is all about balance, but I think if I really think about how I might have to cut back more the next day or exercise a lot more to make up for something, that may make me stop before I dive in.

feltlikesound

I like IIFYM, but there are some things I have eliminated because I don't have good boundaries about them, or they are COMPLETELY empty calories (like sour candy, I LOVE sour candy). We make naan bread or pita pizza semi-regularly and it has proven delicious. We also splurge on whatever we want (for me, usually pasta from my favourite restaurant) once in awhile, with planning, and we order pizza once in awhile and break it up into meals (i.e. we take two slices, pack the rest for lunches before we eat, etc). Whatever works for you, take the advice you need and if it doesn't work for you, let it go.

Archon2

Oh yeah, I screw up sometimes when things are available that I love to especially eat too. Pizza and Chinese take-out are some of my triggers!!

What usually works for me is to do an hour or so of cardio on the days I know I'll be eating those things. And a light breakfast and/or lunch. That way I can have 2 slices of pizza, or even three without blowing everything out of the water for the day.

You have to enjoy the things you like, but just keep it more or less in plan JMHO.

stealthq

Another option is to make up for the overage in advance - that's my preferred method. Know I'm going to go over somewhat on the weekends, and either eat a little less every day of the week or throw in some extra exercise. Motivates me to get my butt working, too, if I know that it means I can have a nice dessert, or try that new restaurant without even thinking about feeling guilty.

If I don't do that (I didn't last week because the gym's air conditioner was down for repairs all week), then I try to eat less after the fact. Rarely, I'll just let it go, because any overeating I do usually just erases a day's deficit and that's acceptable to me on occasion. Like this past Sunday. Had yummy pizza, managed to keep dinner and dessert in check, but stayed up late and didn't want to go to bed hungry and the snack put me over. Oh, well. This week I'll be back on track.

stuffinmuffin

I don't have much in the way of cr@ppy food in the house. Some crisps (mostly always consumed by the other half to have with his lunches)
Pop tarts - I have to eat on days when I have loads fo calories spare from working out.
Meringue nests that I am currently enjoying daily with yoghurt and strawberries in a big eton mess style pud. Other than that there is nothing particularly bad.

Why don't you learn to make your own versions of triggers foods or the bad stuff that you love, but making it much healthier and less calorific by having control of the ingredients? Like I said about with the Eton mess thing, it's a massive bowl of joy that comes in at around 200 calories. Hits all the spots and isn't all that bad for me.

I also eat pizza at least once every fortnight, but I make my own base and there is nowt much wrong with tinned tomatoes reduced as a sauce with 30g of mozerella and chicken or tuna topping.

MystikPixie

I think once in a while is fine with those bad foods, but the problem is most people can't control themselves. And once in a while becomes once every other day, then every day and you've wasted any progress you've made. Though, I honestly believe that setting a goal of when you'll get to cheat, helps alot. Say I go Saturday to Thursday, exercise and maintain my calories, I get to cheat on Friday. If I dont then I dont get to cheat.

However, what works for me, might not work for others, it's all in what you can hande.

chezjuan

In general, I try to make homemade versions of the restaurant food I love. That way I know exactly what is going into it and can control the calories and other macros to make it fit my day. I also find that generally it tastes better to me because the ingredients are fresher.

I still do get restaurant/fast food/carryout, but probably only about 25% of the amount I used to get, and it is generally either due to a specific item that I can't recreate, or because I am travelling.